Ordinary income is any type of income that is taxed at normal rates.
Examples of ordinary income include wages, tips, bonuses, commissions, rent, royalties, short-term capital gains, unqualified dividends and interest income.
For individuals, ordinary income usually consists of pre-tax wages and the wages they have earned.
In a corporate environment, ordinary income comes from ordinary day-to-day business operations, excluding income received from the sale of property, plant and equipment.